However it was a tad ironic that a couple of other people who were selected to share their gripes alongside Matt had a bit of a whinge about Masterchef.

Matt Preston who is a judge on the show grumps were:

I don’t want to drink: Caffeine drinks dressed up in the can like they’re trying to join an outlaw motorcycle gang. Overpriced Australian wine. When a bottle of my favourite gin costs less than a bottle of good pinot you’ll find me drinking negronis in protest.

I don’t want to hear: Sommeliers that talk so much about their “amazing wine choice for this dish” that your food goes cold while they are rabbitting on … Honestly, I don’t care about whether it’s from the Left Bank or Right – just pour me something good that enhances the food.

Expensive food that’s all about the concept and the art but totally forgets about tasting delicious. It’s a restaurant, not a gallery, lads!

Those dreadful “gourmet burgers” that aren’t as good as the originals and are all about twee marketing concepts.

Enough with all the ash in fancy restaurants! It was fun when Copenhagen chef Mads Refslund first made his “burning fields” root veg dish five years ago, but now it’s just another ashtray.

Muffins – they are usually nothing more than a dense formation of chaff, and just as appetising.

I don’t want to read: Vindictive and anonymous reviews online. Online reviews should be the vanguard of reviewing. Their value comes from telling us about somewhere good and undiscovered rather than just retreading the same ground of John Lethlean et al.

Over-excited food criticism that oversells a nice new place as the future of dining. Relax guys, the fact it’s a nice new place is enough for me to want to go.

I don’t want to watch: Poorly made, recycled versions of overseas shows that we love. We are Aussies. If we make them, we should make them better.

I don’t want to see: The loss of a man’s right to have his organic farmland uncontaminated by a neighbour’s GM crops. With this in mind, let’s get behind WA farmer Steve Marsh and his coming court battle with Monsanto.

However Bob Hart a food writer and BBQ guru had as one of his gripes as Masterchef:

Don’t want to watch: I have no idea how a program as promising as MasterChef turned itself into a nonsensical parody of itself and an example of the true horrors of “reality” television, but it has clearly done so. And while many of the decisions made in the course of this deranged festival of bad product-placement are inexplicable, they become even more so when the victors are permitted to conduct their own TV shows without the apparent guidance of a responsible adult. I am, however, looking forward to Jamie’s new two-minute menu series every bit as much as the next lunatic

Elizabeth Merryment of the Sunday Telegraph also had a swipe at the show as well as Matt:

Don’t want to watch: As for the nauseating repetition of words and phrases such as “I love the crunch, the balance of saltiness and sweet” on a certain television reality cooking show, well, thanks Matt, but I’ve had my fill. Roll on 2014.

Mark Best chef/owner at Marque in Sydney may not have been specific but he was a tad scathing of chef’s who he had thought had sold out:

No thanks: A Coles feast of maple-glazed barbecued salmon, roast pork and apple sliders and a classic pavlova? No Curtis Stone, I won’t have a “very Merry Christmas with these festive delights”. In fact I would rather saw my arm off with a Christmas sticky tape dispenser than have that blue-eyed, rottweiler grin intimidate me into partaking in your type of Yuletide cheer.

Heston, I love you mate, but Jesus wept, 300 quid for one of your Chrissy puds on eBay? Something stinks in the state of Denmark!

While I’m on it, hopefully Nigella’s recent troubles mean I will not have to witness the domestic goddess licking ham glaze from one elbow and her five-minute chocolate sauce from the other, by the light of the refrigerator, ever again.

Jamie, I’ve sort of admired you up to when you decided to save the chooks by embedding yourself with Woolworths. More mercenary than pukka, old son.

Not that Curtis is going to give a shit what Mark Best thinks as he has been annointed by the Sunday Tele as one our stars to watch in 2014. He is opening a restaurant in Beverley Hills, Los Angeles soon.

The lowlight of 2013 for me was watching my favourite reality show, MKR, reduced to nothing more than a bad soapie. Following on from that disappointment, was watching my next favourite, Masterchef, having the last nail driven into it’s coffin by being completely and totally, once and for all, NOT about the cooking.

The highlight of 2013 was the debut of House Rules. I loved it, because it was all about the renovations. I fully expect it to go the way of all good RTV over the next few years though – as far as possible from the original concept that made it so enjoyable and popular in the first place.

I agree with all of the above regarding MKR and MC (except for MC professionals…..I do love Marco 😉 )

Two highlights for me were HouseRules and the fasttracking of Survivor.

Oh yeah and how could i forget that i started posting this year and have loved all the conversations we’ve shared. Whether we’ve been on-topic, off-topic, agreeing or disagreeing. For the most part it’s been great fun.

Georgie @5, totally forgot about House Rules. Let’s hope they don’t change a thing. That was a true bright spot on the reality calendar.
Can’t wait for it to start again.
Hope they have no comedians on MKR again, like those girls we all thought were actresses in the beginning. I don’t think I could stand another Jessie and Biswa and Ashlee and Sophia, they all did my head in.

I think you mean Monique Wright @6 Honey Bee. It’s a shit sandwich having to work with kitschmeister Kochie into the bargain, as well, so bonus points for her.
Happy New Rear to the people of Ararat. Jowl$y for Mayor, Georgie !

Techhater @10, House Rules was the biggest success story to me. I thought I would absolutely hate it but I ended up loving it so I hope they don’t change it at all.
Usually when they start messing around with our favourite shows is when they ruin them as in the case of MC.

Can’t wait to see The twins with one shared brain as well, and they don’t look identical to me either, one seems bigger than the other.

TH, are you thinking it will start early in the year, maybe just after schools go back? I hope so. We will just have to wait and see how ‘Awesome’ Mr Awesome is. Lets hope they cut out on the back stories a bit this year.
Andrea I remember you saying you weren’t in to the Reno shows and then you got hooked. It’s a good one ain’t it?
Please just leave it as it was.

Jowl$y didn’t need to hyphenate “overexcited” , either- but then he’s the esteemed food journalist writing for The Age, who shoots his culinary load when a pannacotta jiggles just right.

I guess Mr Awesome is just a sign of the times. Australians dumbing down their vocabulary with phrases from American television. It’s also disturbing seeing the idiot who thinks he’s Jack Nicholson on MKR. I’ll lay London to a brick that he’ll struggle to handle the truth .

Andrea it’s funny a lot of people think ALL twins are identical. My twin is a boy and people always ask “Are you identical?” At this stage of life i just say “Yes” even after i’ve said my twin is a male.

How come Matt gripes that he wants food to taste delicious because its not an art gallery, its a restaurant.
That’s not what the judges say on MC, they always bang on about the eye appeal, eat with your eyes, presentation etc, so what does he actually want, food that looks good, or food that tastes good?
Honey Bee @9, yes, lets hope the standard is high next year, and I’m annoyed at BNTM finishing up too.
Maybe they could show us some of the older series we never saw here?